2019 WSU CUVEE

VINEYARD: DIONYSUS | WINEMAKERS: CALEB FOSTER AND ZACHARY GREEN | AVA: COLUMBIA VALLEY

DESCRIPTION:

• 60% Petit Verdot, 25% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Sauvignon
• Bordeaux Chateau barrels
• This wine is produced exclusively in this vintage for the Private Barrel Auction using thoughtful selection of Sagemoor’s finest blocks at the Dionysus Vineyard; the lovely Cab Sauv block 18, Merlot block 15, and Petit Verdot. These blocks face a warm western sun on the riverside slope, producing many “reserve quality” wines by many producers.
• 2019 delivered amazingly ripe fruit with excellent intensity and ripeness easily balanced with freshness during a sun filled autumn. 
• Choosing Petit Verdot as the lead, Dr Thomas Henik-Kling and his senior wine class at WSU blended this uncommon wine in collaboration with J. Bookwalter, utilizing Bordeaux standard blends.
• Estimated Release: July 2021 | Estimated ALC: 14.5%
• 25 cases are available.

About the Winery:

Ten generations of the Bookwalter family have been involved in American agriculture. But it was Jerry Bookwalter, generation nine and father of current company president John Bookwalter, who led the family into viticulture. After graduating from UC-Davis in 1963, Jerry spent 13 years farming in California’s San Joaquin Valley before moving his family in 1976 to the Tri-Cities in Washington State. Once there, he firmly stamped the Bookwalter name on the state’s nascent wine industry.  From 1976 through 1982, Jerry helped manage the plantings of three iconic vineyards – Sagemoor, Bacchus and Dionysus. He eventually became vineyard manager of the famed Conner Lee Vineyard which remains the largest source of grapes for J. Bookwalter wines. And in 1982, he leveraged his vineyard connections and industry knowledge to start J. Bookwalter winery.

Jerry’s son John quite literally grew up in the vineyards of Eastern Washington, but left in the late 1980s to pursue a successful 10-year sales and marketing career with E&J Gallo, Winterbrook Beverage Group and Coors Brewing Co. In 1997, he returned to Richland with a keen understanding of the winery’s heritage and a clear vision for its future.

About the Winemaker:

Acclaimed winemaker Caleb Foster joined J. Bookwalter in 2014 as head winemaker and general manager.

Foster has been cited as one of the top winemakers in the United States by Wine Advocate, Wine Spectator, Wine Enthusiast, The New York Times and multiple industry publications. In 2013, he was named one of the top 100 Most Influential U.S. Winemakers by Michael Cervin at IntoWine.com.

At J. Bookwalter, Foster has been responsible for some of the winery’s finest wines, including the 2015 Readers cabernet sauvignon which in 2018 was named one of the top 100 wines in the world by Wine Spectator magazine.